Everyone will agree that what we need above all in everyday life is confidence: self-confidence and the confidence that other people and the things that surround us will continue to behave in predictable ways. An important question in this context is the role played by truth and truthfulness in generating this kind of confidence. Is it not actually the case that in order to gain the confidence and trust of others we will go to extraordinary lengths such as telling lies (or at least halftruths), collecting useful data and using truths to exercise power in subtle ways?

A series of lectures organized by Institut für Soziologie/Abt. für Theoretische Soziologie und Sozialanalysen der Johannes Kepler Universität Linz in collaboration with Linz 2009 European Capital of Culture in the Kepler Salon.